The Maserati brand is reinventing itself, with the premium Italian brand looking to forward toward electrification as its future. The Italian automaker made it well aware that they are planning to launch several new and revised vehicles over the next two years, including plug-in hybrids, hybrids, and fully electric cars into the fold. This includes the launch of the super sports car, the MC20, which will make its official debut in September.
But the first vehicle to be launched under the new revision is the brand’s first-ever hybrid, which will be coming in the form of the Ghibli luxury sedan. The Maserati Ghibli Hybrid was originally scheduled to make its worldwide debut at the 2020 Beijing Auto Show in April, however, due to the COVID-19 (or Coronavirus) pandemic, the event was canceled. Instead, Maserati will be unveiling the new Ghibli Hybrid on Wednesday, July 15th.
While Maserati hasn’t given any details about the upcoming Ghibli Hybrid, our spy photographers caught one of the 2021 prototypes near Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA) North American headquarters in Auburn Hills, Michigan. This prototype does a bad job hiding its disguise, due to only half of the badging being covered by on the vehicle. Very minor tweaks have been performed to the front and rear on this Ghibli S model, but we can expect the interior to get more attention spent on updating it. We can expect a larger infotainment screen, we would be surprised if a version of the new 10.1-inch Uconnect touchscreen infotainment system was adapted from the 2021 Chrysler Pacifica and 2021 Dodge Durango. We also are hearing about the addition of an all-digital gauge cluster as well.
Under the hood, we have been hearing details of the 2.0-liter “GME-T4” turbocharged four-cylinder that is under the hood of several FCA products, from the Jeep® Wrangler to the Alfa Romeo Giulia. However, like the 2020 Jeep Wrangler, the engine would include a version of the eTorque mild-hybrid system used on the Wrangler and Ram 1500 pickups. The eTorque system combines a belt-drive motor generator unit with a 48-volt battery pack to enable start/stop function, short-term torque assist, and brake energy regeneration.
We will be breaking down all of the specs of the new 2021 Maserati Ghibli Hybrid as they become available.
